The Knights threatened to make it a run-away early on but survived in the end for a 13-7 victory over the host Falcons. They pulled out the hard-fought six-point victory with two clutch fourth-quarter plays.

With the game tied at 7-all, Oak Park senior running back Phil Stewart went in from three-yards out for what proved the game-winning touchdown. Groves senior captain Henry Van Faussien blocked the extra point to set up what could have been a wild ending.

The Falcons took over and drove down to midfield on a pair of passes from quarterback Markis Alexander to Christian Thomas and Eli Turner. However, on his next throw, Oak Park corner Jaylin Miles, a three-year starter, stepped in front of the Groves receiver and made the key interception to preserve the triumph.

Oak Park hiked its mark to 2-0 while Groves falls to 0-2 after tough season-opening losses to two of the state's top-ranked teams in West Bloomfield and Oak Park.

"They put a lot of pressure on our offense and they did a lot of blitzing on us," said Oak Park's veteran head coach Greg Carter, whose team played without starting running back Torriano Richardson who was sidelined for the second straight week with a hamstring injury. "It really affected our offense, but we kind of expected that out of them because they're really a good team. They play hard. They play extremely hard.

"We have a really good running back (Stewart) and he was able to do some things tonight," he said. "And, our defense played exceptionally well against a really good offense. So, to hold this team to seven points is really a good job."

Following are five take-aways from the game:

The early touchdowns

Oak Park needed just two plays to open the scoring.

Ohio State-bound senior quarterback D'Wan Mathis hit highly-recruited D-1 receiver Maliq Carr with a 40-yard pass play right down the middle of the field. Stewart scored on the very next play on an 11-yard run.

Instead of caving in, the Falcons veteran defense dug in and held the Knights off the scoreboard for the rest of the half and through the third quarter. The hearty defensive effort allowed Groves to tie the game late in the third quarter when quarterback Markis Alexander hit Harvard-bound standout Khalil Dawsey with a 21-yard screen pass.

Neither team made headway, although Oak Park had a third-quarter touchdown called back because of a penalty, until late in the fourth on Stewart's second touchdown of the night.

"They schemed us on a couple things there (at the beginning) and it was a couple coaching errors on our part," said Groves head coach Brendan Flaherty. "But, the kids responded real well like I expected them too. I'm really proud of them.

"I mean it could have gone either way," he said. "They could have run us out of the game, but they didn't and it was good."

Facing early adversity

Oak Park took the early lead but suffered a key loss shortly into the second quarter.

With the Knights on offense, Carr was called for a personal foul and got tossed out of the game. The ejection seemed to give Groves a lift while curtailing Oak Park's offense.

"From my eyes, the defensive guy pulled our guy's face mask and he pushed him in retaliation. I think the referee thought he threw a punch," said Carter. "But, when we looked at it on film, he just really pushed the guy hard. But you can't over react to that. You pick up your helmet and play another play."

Still in the hunt

Oak Park, Groves and Farmington Harrison finished in a three-way tie for the OAA White Division championship last season.

"I know that whoever won this game was really going to be in a good position in our league," said Carter. "So, we were lucky to come on the road and get a really, really tough win.

"This was a hard-fought win and when you're on the road in our league, and the OAA is just fantastic, you have to fight on the road and our kids fought," he said. "So to come away with a win on the opponent of this caliber's field says a lot about our kids."

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"I think up and down in that division it's pretty tough," he said. "I think there are some battles, not just the perennial guys like Oak Park and Harrison, but all those teams like Rochester and Stoney. There are no gimmies. There are all good coaches and some pretty good players and it's always going to be a battle...be a slugfest."

A tough opening act

The schedule maker did not do Groves any favors to begin the 2018 season.

The Falcons, who have enjoyed five consecutive winning seasons, opened last week with a tough 39-28 loss to 2017 Division 1 state runner-up West Bloomfield. This week they met an Oak Park which, like West Bloomfield, is loaded with Division 1 talent and considered a Division 2 state title contender this year.

"Our focus was to play two tough teams and beat them and we just came up short," said Flaherty. "I take nothing away from Oak Park and West Bloomfield because they're fantastic. But, we expect to win, especially at home."

On Oct. 12, the second-last game of the season, Groves will host Farmington Harrison in what could be another crucial OAA White Division game. The Falcons defeated Harrison last season in a thrilling three overtime game which resulted in a three-way tie (with Oak Park) for the OAA White Division crown.

Groves then ends the regular season by hosting district rival Seaholm on Oct. 19.

A strange series

Despite losing for the second straight year, Groves still holds a 7-6 overall winning record over Oak Park in a series that dates back to 1963.

The Falcons dropped last year's battle, 34-14. Two years ago, Groves won by a slim 13-12 margin.

All three of those games -- their only meetings since the turn of the millennium -- were OAA White Division encounters.